To help curb the global rise of ransomware, the European police agency Europol has decided to launch a new initiative and website to put victims of an attack in touch with the police.

The initiative will be called “No More Ransom” and will be coordinated by Europol, but will also be receiving help from the Dutch national police, Intel Security and Kaspersky Lab.

As cyber attackers using ransomware are discovered, details regarding the methods they use to trick users into paying fines to regain their encrypted files will be updated on the No More Ransom site which will better inform users in regard to the schemes used by attackers.

The Europol’s deputy director of operations, Wil van Gemert explains why a new initiative is necessary to slow the spread of ransomware, saying: “For a few years now ransomware has become a dominant concern for EU law enforcement. We expect to help many people to recover control over their files, while raising awareness and educating the population on how to maintain their devices clean from malware”.

No More Ransom will be able to offer internet users a detailed explanation of what ransomware is, how they can protect themselves and what to do if they fall victim to the malware. Raj Samani, the European head of Intel Security explained how the site will disrupt the spread of malware, saying: “Right now the only option victims have is to pay the ransom or not. This gives people another option”.

Victims of an attack will also be able to use the site to upload scrambled files from their devices in an effort to identify which strain of ransomware they belong to.

Currently the site contains links to decryption software that can be used to unlock malware from the Coinvualt, Shade, Rannoh and Rakni families of ransomware.